1. Heads-up with
financial startups:
tips to be successful
By Adam Greene CPA

2. After thinking it over and
over, have you decided to
quit your job and become
an entrepreneur? Good for
you!! There are hundreds
of opportunities out there
and even though starting a
business might not be
easy, I applaud you being
brave enough to follow
your dream. And as
building a company or
brand takes a lot of time
and effort, I would like to
share some financial tips
that I hope will keep you
from making very common
mistakes that can lead to a
step back in your process.
Image courtesy of Tax Credits at Flickr.com

3. Prioritize tasks wisely to achieve your goals
As it has been said by many, “Time is money”. It is usual that when people start
their business, they spend a lot of time trying to figure out how to develop ideas,
thinking of who to talk about them, and even planning for those meetings
arranged. Just because you are the founder, it doesn’t mean you need to do
everything around here! Give yourself a position in the company and focus on it.
Delegation is a real investment, not just an expense. Finding the suitable person
for a given position will allow you to devote your time to achieve your main goal
while the rest of the tasks are also being fulfilled. If you still want to have some
control of what is going on, setting deadlines and stages for achieving your goals
will help you track the business progress.
Keep your hopes high but be ready for the worst case scenario
When you take the leap into starting your own business, you need more than just
believing in your brand or company. You need to be financially prepared for
situations in which incomes are not steady or enough. If you have a job but still
can work on your business on the side, don’t quit until you find some financial
stability. If you definitely need to be involved full-time in your project and have
decided to quit your job, it is recommendable to have at least six months of cash
in savings for you to use in case of emergency for living or business expenses.

4. Check up on your cash flow and spending
A business fails when it runs out of cash. If you have no idea where your incomes
are going or where they came from, you really need to create a budget for your
project, and a plan to achieve financial goals, and you should stick to that plan. It
is understandable that there are many things catching entrepreneurs’ attention
when they are starting out a business. However, keeping track of cash flow or
spending must not become a secondary issue. You don’t want to waste your time
at the end of the month trying to find out where the cash went or looking for
financial information in a pile of papers.
Using an online software
will help you keep track
of your expenses and
have your financial
information organized.
Once your business has
grown, you might have to
hire a professional to deal
with complicated
information.
Image courtesy of GotCredit at Flickr.com

5. Pay yourself, cover your fixed expenses, and give yourself employee
benefits
It is ok if entrepreneurs don’t have big salaries at an early stage, but you
definitely have to find the way to pay yourself for your hard work. You
must think of yourself as an employee who has fixed expenses to cover,
and also benefits to enjoy. About expenses, be smart, keep them low, be
patient and make sure you have cash to cover your costs. As for the
benefits, take some time to figure out which ones are worthy to keep and
how much they will cost. Remember that now you are the only
responsible for your welfare and stress or overwork are against it. If you
are not in a desperate financial situation, you are more likely to make the
right, rational decisions for your business.
Find real customers who will give you real feedback
Identify potential customers for your business. Ask them about their
opinion, if they don’t like what you offer, that might be a great
opportunity to find out what to change or adapt to meet market’s needs.
If you only ask people who know you personally, the feedback you will get
is not totally reliable as it might not be objective.

6. Find yourself a financial mentor
Mentors’ role is to guide you through the journey you started. Let them
do their job, analyze ups and downs a new company faces; help you make
difficult decisions; teach you from their own experience. You don’t need to
invest a lot of money in advisors. There are firms that charge according to
the stage the company is at; and there are also entrepreneurs with
experience willing to help you get your goals. Do not hesitate. Ask for
advice or for help when it comes to make great financial decisions.